Western Notes: LeBron, Gentry, Honeycutt
If LeBron James opts out of his contract with the Heat, the Rockets will have as an enticing a situation to offer him as any team in the league, writes Howard Beck of Bleacher Report. Beck lays out what options Houston has to fit James’ salary in, plus notes the team views Carmelo Anthony and Chris Bosh as secondary options if they fail to land James, provided Bosh and Anthony also exercise their ETO’s.
More from the wild west:
- Anthony Slater of The Oklahoman hands out the grades for Andre Roberson’s 2013/14 season with the Thunder.
- Alvin Gentry will make more than $800K as a Warriors assistant this season, reports Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link). That’s a raise on his salary from the Clippers this season but not nearly as much as he would have made if he’d become head coach for the Cavs or Lakers, two jobs for which he was a leading candidate.
- Free agent small forward Tyler Honeycutt will be auditioning for the Rockets and Warriors, reports David Pick of Eurobasket.com (Twitter link). Honeycutt last saw NBA action with the Kings during the 2012/13 season when he averaged 0.9 PPG and 1.1 RPG in nine appearances.
- The Lakers will bring in Shabazz Napier on Sunday for a workout, reports Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News (Twitter link).
- The Grizzlies have a workout scheduled on Saturday for Walter Tavares, reports Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops (Twitter link).
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Draft Notes: Tavares, Kings, Embiid
Be sure and spend Thursday night’s NBA Draft with us here at Hoops Rumors. Beginning at 6pm CDT, I will be hosting a live chat where I answer your questions, provide up-to-the-minute updates on all the picks, as well as weigh in with my thoughts and opinions on all the moves and selections. So save the date and join us for what is shaping up to be an exciting night.
Here’s the latest draft news and notes:
- The extension that first-round draft prospect Walter Tavares signed with his team in Spain gives him greater flexibility to join the NBA this year, agent Andy Miller tells Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter link). That suggests that the club lowered the amount of his buyout clauses in exchange for securing him for more years should he remain overseas, though that’s just my speculation.
- One of the biggest questions heading into draft night is where will Joel Embiid end up. Once a top-three lock, the news of him needing foot surgery has forced many a mock draft maker to revise their projections. One NBA GM who is picking in Top-10 said of Embiid: “My medical people told me flat-out not to take him,” reports Jeff Goodman of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
- LaQuinton Ross, C.J. Fair, DeAndre Daniels, and JaKarr Sampson worked out for the Mavericks today, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv.
- Kings Assistant GM Mike Bratz called Nik Stauskas and Doug McDermott the best two shooters in the draft, reports Jason Jones of The Sacramento Bee (Twitter link). Sacramento currently holds the eighth pick in the draft, one slot ahead of the Hornets, who have been linked to McDermott in numerous mock drafts.
- The Kings have workouts scheduled this Monday with Keith Appling, Deonte Burton, Mike Dixon Jr., DeAndre Kane, Jarred Shaw, and Aaric Murray, the team announced.
- Brian Schmitz of The Orlando Sentinel lays out the case for why the Magic should avoid selecting Embiid in Thursday’s NBA Draft.
- Markel Brown will work out for the Spurs on Saturday, tweets Michael Scotto of Sheridan Hoops.
Chuck Myron contributed to this post.
Eastern Notes: Embiid, Sanders, Fredette, Hawks
Sources in Cleveland tell Chad Ford of ESPN.com that it’s highly unlikely that the Cavs forge ahead and take Joel Embiid first overall now that he has a broken foot, as Ford writes in his latest Insider-only mock draft. It’s unclear just how far he’ll fall. Ford has him dropping to the Magic at No. 4, while our Alex Lee has him going to the Celtics at No. 6 in the most recent version of the Hoops Rumors Mock Draft. Embiid’s injury will have reverberations across the league, but especially in the Eastern Conference, as Eastern teams hold five of the top six picks. Here’s more from the East:
- The trade market for Larry Sanders is “virtually non-existent,” according to Gery Woelfel of The Journal Times, running counter to reports that the Kings and Mavs have interest in the Bucks center.
- Panathinaikos of Greece is targeting Jimmer Fredette after Nick Calathes didn’t respond to the club’s apparent three-year $6.5MM offer, as Sport24 reports (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). The Bulls guard hits free agency next month, while Calathes remains on a non-guaranteed contract with the Grizzlies that Memphis isn’t planning to waive.
- The Hawks are set to work out draft prospect Walter Tavares today, tweets Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops. That’s in spite of yesterday’s news that the 7’3″ 22-year-old has signed a three-year extension with a Spanish team.
Walter Tavares Inks Extension With Spanish Club
Potential first-round pick Walter Tavares has signed a three-year extension with Gran Canaria of Spain, the Spanish ACB league officially announced (translation via Sportando’s Emiliano Carchia). It’s unclear what kind of NBA escape clauses there are in the deal, but it’s something of an about-face for the Andy Miller client, who had reportedly been moving toward a buyout from the club.
The 7’3″ Tavares is the 33rd-ranked prospect in Jonathan Givony’s DraftExpress listings, and he’s No. 39 with Chad Ford of ESPN.com. Still, several NBA executives told Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports earlier this month that the 22-year-old has a strong chance to end up in the first round, and some teams with picks in the 20s had been planning to bring him in for a workout, according to Wojnarowski. The Celtics, whose last pick is No. 17, auditioned him Wednesday and measured his standing reach at 9’10”, the best they’ve ever seen, tweets Baxter Holmes of The Boston Globe. The Pacers, who traded their first-round pick, and the Heat, who pick 26th overall, have also worked him out in the past few weeks.
An NBA team may end up drafting him highly to secure his NBA rights while he continues to play overseas even if his contract wouldn’t let him come stateside anytime soon. He averaged only 6.4 points in 21.5 minutes of play for Gran Canaria this season, so clearly he remains a raw prospect.
Draft Notes: Randle, Payne, Tavares, Grizz, Suns
With the draft only eight days away, we should expect a steady stream of updates leading up to next Thursday night’s festivities in Brooklyn. Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders profiles prospects whose stock is on the rise; a list that includes Doug McDermott, Elfrid Payton, Rodney Hood, T.J. Warren, Zach LaVine, Jarnell Stokes, Rodney Hood, Shabazz Napier and Mitch McGary. In addition, here are some more team-specific draft notes from Wednesday:
- Duke’s Andre Dawkins will work out with the Pistons, Mavericks and Magic after Friday’s session with the Wizards, tweets Adam Zagoria of SNY.
- The Clippers worked out C.J. Fair, Glenn Robinson III, Cleanthony Early and Jakarr Sampson on Wednesday, adds Zagoria via Twitter.
- Zagoria also tweets that the Pacers will work out Ohio guard Nick Kellogg next Monday and the Nets will work out Fair next Wednesday (Twitter links).
- The Jazz got a revealing look at Noah Vonleh in Monday’s six-man workout, writes Mike Sorensen of the Deseret News. Many draftniks foresee Vonleh going to Utah at No. 5.
- In an Insider Only piece, ESPN’s David Thorpe outlines a handful of pre-NBA similarities between Syracuse product Jerami Grant and current NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard.
Earlier updates:
- Working out for the Cavaliers today, Andrew Wiggins looked “very good” according to Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio (via Twitter). Amico adds that Cleveland’s first overall selection remains wide open.
- Baxter Holmes of the Boston Globe profiles Australian backcourt prospect Dante Exum. Meanwhile, NBA.com offers their pre-draft breakdown of Clemson product K.J. McDaniels.
- The Kings, who pick 8th, will work out Hood, LaVine, Sim Bhullar, Nick Johnson, Elijah Pittman and RIchard Solomon on Friday, according to Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee, who adds that LaVine has fans in the Sacramento front office (Twitter links are here).
- With concerns about his right foot in the air, Julius Randle impressed in his workout with the Jazz today, writes Aaron Falk of The Salt Lake Tribune. As he has since the original report, Randle maintained today in Utah that he does not need surgery.
- The Bulls will work out Michigan State’s Adreian Payne on Monday, tweets Shams Charania of RealGM. Owners of the 16th and 19th selections, Chicago figures to be in the market for outside shooting, making Payne a realistic possibility.
- The Celtics brought 7-foot-3 prospect Walter Tavares in for a workout on Thursday, reports Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops.com. As Scotto notes, Tavares seems to be making a late push up draft boards.
- The Grizzlies will host Napier, Jordan Clarkson, Jerami Grant, P.J. Hairston, LaQuinton Ross and C.J Wilcox on Thursday, the team announced.
- Michael Cohen of The Commercial Appeal profiles Grant and Hairston along with Payne and Hood in his examination of which players may slip to Memphis at pick 22.
- Thanasis Antetokounmpo will work out for the Spurs, according to Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today (via Twitter). As Zillgitt points out, Antetokounmpo’s talent, bloodlines and the fact that he will have worked out for nearly half the league by next Thursday make him an intriguing prospect.
- Suns head coach Jeff Hornacek considers smarts nearly as valuable as athleticism when evaluating draft prospects, writes Matt Petersen of Suns.com, who points to Gerald Green as an elite athlete who thrived in Phoenix after showing signs of basketball I.Q. despite a rocky start to his career.
Draft Notes: Bucks, Parker, Embiid, Hornets
The Bucks aren’t having any trouble getting a look at the top prospects. Milwaukee is reportedly set for a pair of workouts with Andrew Wiggins, and Chad Ford of ESPN.com hears that Jabari Parker will work out again for the club this week after having done so last week (Twitter link). Joel Embiid was already apparently slated to audition for the club, and GM John Hammond also met with the Kansas big man last week, Ford tweets. The Bucks appear to be the only team with which Wiggins, Parker, Embiid and Dante Exum have all agreed to visit and work out, Ford notes (Twitter link). Here’s more on the draft, now just 10 days away.
- Jerami Grant, De’Mon Brooks, Josh Davis, Jarell Eddie and Mike Moser are among the draft prospects showing off for the Hornets today, the team announced via press release.
- The Heat are auditioning Walter Tavares today, tweets Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops.
- Keith Appling, Dave Dudzinski, Markel Starks, Tyler Stone and Jermaine Marshall are showing off for the Celtics today, as Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com notes via Twitter. Marshall will also audition for the Cavs, Sportando reports (via Twitter).
- Roscoe Smith has the Raptors and Mavs on his agenda, as Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv hears (Twitter link).
- Richard Harris of NBADraft.net adds the Bulls to the list of teams for which Johnny O’Bryant III has worked out. O’Bryant also has auditions slated with the Rockets, Heat, Hornets, Bucks, Grizzlies, Raptors and Pistons, Harris reports.
- Doug Haller of the Arizona Republic adds the Sixers, Mavs, Rockets and Heat to the list of teams that are getting a look at Jordan Bachynski (Twitter link).
- Jahii Carson, Kendrick Perry, Earnest Ross and Alec Brown are all performing for the Rockets, Scotto tweets.
- The Lakers are one of more than a dozen teams for which Ronald Roberts Jr. is working out, a source tells Zagoria (Twitter link).
- The Warriors are auditioning Eric Moreland, Roberto Nelson and Travis Bader, according to Diamond Leung of the Bay Area News Group (Twitter links).
Draft Notes: Embiid, Silins, Pelicans
Brad Stevens tells Chris Forsberg of ESPNBoston.com that the Celtics haven’t yet established a draft board. “I have not sat down with our front office all in one room and talked about a draft board,” Stevens said. “We’ll sit down now, after probably next week’s workouts, and talk more as we continue to get closer to the draft. But clearly with two picks in the top 20, we’ve got a lot of evaluating to do.” Here a rundown of today’s draft notes:
- T.J. Warren, Scottie Wilbekin, Roscoe Smith, Davion Berry, and Isaiah Armwood will work out for the Nuggets, reports Christopher Dempsey of The Denver Post (Twitter links).
- A league source confirmed to John Reid of The Times-Picayune that the Pelicans are in discussions with several teams looking to trade their first round pick (Twitter link). The Pelicans are reportedly taking an aggressive approach to trading into the first round.
- Magic executives are high enough on Marcus Smart‘s intangibles to consider selecting him with the fourth pick in the draft, reports Josh Robbins of The Orlando Sentinel. Robbins adds that had Smart declared for last year’s draft, Orlando might have selected him at No. 2.
- Bob Finnan of The News-Herald urges his readers to monitor whether Joel Embiid schedules work outs for the Bucks or Sixers between now and the draft. If Embiid shuts out those teams, Finnan believes it would indicate a promise from the Cavs to take him at No. 1. Such a development would be significant, considering Embiid is already scheduled to work out for Milwaukee.
- Adi Joseph of USA Today takes a look at the draft needs for the Hornets and Mavs.
Earlier updates:
- While the Cavs had some concerns when evaluating Joel Embiid‘s back, Terry Pluto of The Plain Dealer says there were no “red flags,” and that Cleveland was blown away by his workout. The belief that Embiid’s physical went well is mounting, after a report to the contrary initially surfaced.
- Ojars Silins has decided to keep his name in the NBA draft pool, reports Jānis Freimanis of Sportacentrs.com (translation via Emiliano Carchia of Sportando). Silins will take the Grizzlies up on their workout invitation, and will also work out for the Spurs and Pistons over the next couple weeks.
- The Pelicans are aggressively trying to trade into the first round in hopes of selecting a young small forward or center, tweets Marc J. Spears of Yahoo! Sports.
- Sean Deveney of The Sporting News is hearing rumors that a team has promised to take Elfrid Payton in the teens of the first round (H/T Basketball Insiders).
- T.J. Warren‘s stock is rising into the mid-first-round, sources tell Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders (Twitter link).
- Kennedy tweets that league executives are “fascinated” by Walter Tavares. The 7’3″ center is projected as an early second round pick by both Jonathan Givony of DraftExpress and ESPN Insider Chad Ford.
- Eliot Shorr-Parks of NJ.com speculates that the conflicting reports out of Cleveland regarding Embiid’s health could be a smoke screen aimed at convincing the Sixers they need to trade up to the No. 1 spot in order to get Andrew Wiggins.
Draft Notes: Sykes, Canadian Players, Johnson
Rick Bonnell of The Charlotte Observer examines the sudden influx of talent into the NBA from Canada. Bonnell notes that at least three Canadians will be selected in the first round of this year’s draft.
Here’s more news regarding the upcoming draft:
- NBA.com released their prospect profile of Isaiah Sykes. Sykes, who averaged 17.2 PPG, 7.2 RPG, and 3.5 APG this season, is projected as a possible second round pick this year.
- Wheat Hotchkiss of NBA.com looks at the adversity that Keith Appling, Andre Dawkins, and Scottie Wilbekin have had to overcome, and the draft prospects for each player.
- NBA.com published their prospect profile on Arizona’s Nick Johnson. Johnson, who averaged 16.3 PPG, 3.7 RPG, and 2.8 APG last season is a projected second round pick in this year’s NBA Draft.
- The Nuggets have workouts scheduled Friday with Johnson, Jerrelle Benimon, Sykes, and Brandon Jefferson the team announced via NBA.com.
- On Friday, the Pacers are set to work out Davion Berry, DeAndre Daniels, Will Sheehey, Russ Smith, Xavier Thames, and Kendall Williams, the team announced via Twitter.
- Walter Tavares worked out for the Pacers today, reports Michael Scotto of SheridanHoops (Twitter link).
Walter Tavares Working On Euro Contract Buyout
European big man Walter Tavares is working on a contract buyout with his team in the Spanish ACB League and will travel soon to the United States to work out for several NBA teams, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. Several execs believe that the 7’3″ center has a strong change to land in the first round of the draft.
Wojnarowski hears that several teams in the 20s plan to bring Tavares in for a closer look. The 22-year-old doesn’t have a formal agreement on a buyout with Gran Canaria of the Spanish ACB, but there is momentum toward that happening. Tavares is a relative basketball neophyte who never played basketball before his 17th birthday. There’s no question that Tavares is green, but he has tons of upside and has intrigued many scouts.
Tavares put his toe in the water for last year’s draft but ultimately decided to withdraw just weeks before. The big man is currently ranked No. 34 on DraftExpress’ top 100 list and slated to go No. 32 to the Sixers in their mock. Tavares is being represented by agent Andy Miller.
And-Ones: O’Neal, Sterling, Jackson
Jonathan Abrams of Grantland examines the resurgence of Jermaine O’Neal with the Warriors. O’Neal feels like his years with the Celtics were lost seasons, per the article. O’Neal said, “Those two years [in Boston] were very difficult for me, because not only did I feel like I was wearing down physically, I was wearing down mentally. That was the first time in my life I felt myself starting to break away a little bit.”
More from around the league:
- With Clippers owner Donald Sterling’s recent lifetime ban being announced, the legal battle will now begin. In an article by Mark Medina of The Los Angeles Daily News, legal and business experts from USC analyze the situation involving the possibility of the league forcing Sterling to sell the team.
- Tim Kawakami of the Bay Area News Group examines some of the issues that have arisen between the Warriors front office and coach Mark Jackson.
- Nine NBA teams — the Spurs, Clippers, Bucks, Heat, Lakers, Hawks, Bobcats, Suns, and Rockets — sent personnel to Spain recently to scout point guard Guillem Vives and center Walter Tavares, reports David Sardinero of Kia en Zona (translation by Jorge Sierra of HoopsHype). Both will be in this year’s draft.
- Chad Ford of ESPN.com (Insider subscription required) has released his most recent Big Board rankings for the upcoming NBA Draft.
- The Bobcats announced (Twitter link) that Josh McRoberts’ surgery to remove bone spurs from his left big toe was successful. Roberts won’t be able to do any basketball related activity for a minimum of four weeks.
- Mike Bianchi of The Orlando Sentinel examines if Magic owner Rich DeVos might be the next one Adam Silver will target for inappropriate comments. DeVos is alleged to have made anti-gay comments in the past.